Mud-ring corner.



No. 688,064. Patented nec. 3, 1901..' M. F. COX.

MUD RING CORNER. (Application med mig. a1, 1901.) (No Model.)

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UNiTEiD STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MILLARD F. COX, OF RICHMOND, VIRGINIA, ASSIGNOR TO RICHMOND WORKS, OFRICHMOND, VIRGINIA, A CORPORATION OF VIRGINIA, AND THE AMERICANLOCOMOTIVE COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORA- TION OE NEW YORK.

MUD-RING CORNER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N o. 688,064, datedDecember 3, 1901.

Application iiled August 3l, 1901. Serial No. 73,920. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Beit known that I, MILLARD F. COX, a citizen of the United States, and aresident of Richmond, Henrico county, Virginia, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Mud-Ring Corners, of which the followingis a specification.

My invention relates to the fire-boxes of steam generators and boilers,and more especially to mud-rings employed in such generators or boilersas embody a water fire-box, wherein a mud-ring or foundation-ring, as itis sometimes called, is employed to form the bottom of the water-spacesurrounding or in contact with the tire-box; and my improvements areespecially directed toward providing a construction of corner on themud-ring which shall be more effective in sealing the fire-box againstleakage, and thus obviate the serious difficulty heretofore encounteredin all attempts to secure a steam and water tight joint at the cornersof such mud-rings.

It is well-known in the art that constant trouble is experienced in theefforts to keep the corners of the mud-ring tight, especially inlocomotive-boilers or such other boilers as are subjected to the samenecessary hard usage, and to which corners, owing to the conformation ofthe corner, when a drop-cornerthe most desirable form for this kind ofboilerit has been necessary to secure the inner and outer sheets orplates of the lirebox portion of the boiler by means of tapy bolts, withwhich bolts it has been found impossible to secure and maintain aperfectly tight joint. As a result of this construction it is onlypossible to utilize in the form of mud ring heretofore commonly employedand familiar to those skilled in the art at the best but three longrivets, one passing directly across the central part of the corner, withits inner head occupying the curved portion of the inner sheet at thecorner, and one on each side thereof and having their inner heads inclose contact with the head of the centrally-disposed rivet, while theouter heads of these long rivets are necessarily disposed aboutforty-Iive degrees apart. This leaves a comparatively large extent ofthe outer curved portion of the mud-ring free,

and this portion must be secured by tap-bolts v to the outer sheets,which bolts cannot possibly effect and maintain a tight joint for anyreasonable length of time. In order, therefore, to preserve all theadvantages of a dropcorner and obviate the defects specified, I providea depressed or channeled corner on the mud-ring, so disposed as topermit the use of short rivets in lieu of tap-bolts, by which means I amenabled to use a suliicient number of such rivets in suiiiciently closeproximity to one another to eectively secure a perfectly tight joint andone which will stand. the heavy strains and stresses to which thecorners are subjected in use, especially on locomotive and like boilers.

With the foregoing objects in view, therefore, my invention consists ina novel construction of mud-ring corner and in the details thereof, ashereinafter described and claimed, with reference to the accompanyingdrawings, in Which- Figure lis a sectional plan view showing a mud-ringaccording to my invention applied to the bottom of a fire-box. Fig. 2 isa broken sectional side elevation of one of the corners. Fig. 3 is avertical sectional detail view through a corner, and Fig. 4 is a similarview of a modification.

Referring now to the drawings, in which the same reference charactersrelate to the same or corresponding parts in all the views, the numerall indicates the outer sheet or plate of a tire-box forming with theinner sheet or plate 2 the water-space around the fire-box 3. Theseplates are bent on a suitable radius to form the curved corners 4, theinner plates being united by a lap-joint 5, in which one of said platesis of normal crosssection, as at 6, overlapping the other of taperedcross-section, as at 7, thus forming a continuous inner surface, lwhilethe outer plates are united together in a similar manner, as shown at 8and 9, respectively.

The numeral l0 indicates a solid or drop mud-ring shaped to accuratelyiit the inner surfaces of the outer and inner plates. This ring may bemilled or drop-forged or made of poses.

cast-steel or a combination of cast-steel ends and wrought-iron sides,and at the corners it is depressed or channeled, as indicated at 1l,where the depression is shown of such depth, width, and length as willaccommodate the rivet-heads of short rivets 12, the inner heads of whichcan be readily formed by any suitable rotating device.

It should be observed that the provision of the depression 1l does notmaterially weaken the ring, and therefore my improved ring possesses allthe advantages of the drop-corner and the further advantage ofcapability of use in any mud-ring of ordinary width in which the drop-corner is inapplicable. Furthermore, it will be evident t-hat myimproved mud-ring corner dispenses entirely with the long rivet commonlyused directly across the corner, such long rivet being replaced by thetwo oppositely-disposed short rivets 12.

As a further means of securing the corner I may employ tap-bolts 13above the depression 11, such bolts alternating with a few of the shortrivets and with the long rivets 14, which pass across the extreme limitsof the corner, and thus disposed at substantially right angles to eachother.

With my construction it will be seen that the joints at the corner aremade effectively steam and water tight and that the short rivets providea more desirable and effective means for binding the plates to thecorners of lthe ring.

I may in many cases entirely dispense with tap bolts by the use of aconstruction as shown, for example, in the modified form of mud-ringcorner illustrated in Fig. 4, Where the corners are thickened on top.The thickened portions l5 form a close joint with the plates.

I am aware that a sectional mud-ring has been proposed in whichcorrugations are employed and that such rings have been channeled tolighten them, in which cases the rings are weakened to such an extent asto render them ineffective for practical pur- I am also aware that ithas been proposed to provide in such sectional ring Han ges at thecorner of the steam-space, in which construction the ring is by suchmeans so reduced in strength as to be impractical for use as a mud-ring.

I claim as my inventionl. The herein-described mud-ringfor boil-v ers,consisting of a solid ring adapted to fit the space around a fire-box,and having depressions of limited extent at the corners, in combinationwith the plates of the boiler at the corners, and short rivets passingthrough the plates and having their upset heads projecting into saiddepression, substantially as described.

2. The herein-described mud-ring for boilers, consisting of a solid ringadapted to t the space around a fire-box, and having depressions oflimited extent at the corners, in combination with the plates of theboiler at the corners, and short rivets passing through the plates andhaving heads projecting into said depression, two of said short rivetsbeing disposed opposite to each other across the corner, therebydispensing with a long rivet at this point.

3. The herein-described mud-ring for boilers, consisting of a solid ringadapted to fit the space around a fire-box, and having depressions oflimited extent at the corner, in combination with the plates of theboiler at the corner, and short rivets passing through the plates andhaving heads projecting into said depression, said ring being thickenedon one side, at the top, substantially as described and for the purposesset forth.

4. As a new article of manufacture, a solid mud-ring for boilers, havingrounded corners and provided with depressions 0f limited extent at thecorners on one side of the ring, such depressions being of such shapeand dimensions as to receive and accommodate the heads of rivets passingthrough the walls of the ring in proximity to said depressions,substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

MILLARD F. COX.

Witnesses:

LESLIE H. J oNEs, ALBERT O. BoscHEN.

Corrections in Letters Patent No. 688 064.

i vL l, i

It is hereby certified that the assignee in Lettere Patent No. 688,064,granted' December 3, 1901, upon the application of Millard F. Cox, ofRichmond, Virginia, for an improvement in Mud-Ring Corners, should havebeen described as Redmond Works, of Richmond, Virginia, c corporation ofVirginia, of The American Locomotive Company, of New York, N. Y., acorporation of New York, instead of Richmond Vorke, of Richmond,Virginia, a corporation of Virginia, and The American Locomotive Companyof New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York 5 and line 82, page 2, theWord at should read as; and that the said Letters Patent should be readwith these corrections therein that the same may conform to the recordofthe case inthe Patent Otlice.

Signed, conntersigned, and sealed this 10th day of December, A. D.,1901.

[SEAL] F. L. (MilVHBELL,`

Assistant Secretary of the Interior.

Countersigned F. I. ALLEN,

Commissione/r of Patente.

